Exhibitions

Medieval Manuscripts
Eddas and Sagas

Some of Iceland’s national treasures are on display in the Culture House’s featured exhibition; Medieval Manuscripts – Eddas and Sagas. It includes principal medieval manuscripts, such as Codices Regii of the Poetic Edda and Prose Edda, and law codices and Christian works, not to forget the Sagas of Icelanders.

The old vellum manuscripts preserve the Northern classical heritage: unique sagas, poems and narratives which are often our sole written sources of information on the society, religion and world view of the people of Northern Europe from pagan times through the tumult of Viking Expansion, the settlement of the Atlantic Islands and the period of Christianisation.

The exhibition focuses on the period preceding the writing of the manuscripts, their origins and role, manuscript collecting, editions, and on their reception in Iceland and abroad. It also portrays the process of book making itself: preparing the vellum and ink, writing, illuminating etc. are explained in a special exhibit area.

Mondays and Fridays at 3:00 pm, there is an open guided tour of the exhibition in English.

The Medieval Manuscripts exhibition is among the venues and sites within The Icelandic Saga Trail Association:

Opened 5 October 2002, on permanent view

Millennium - phase one

In this first phase of the exhibition Millennium, a variety of pieces from the collection of the National Gallery, from the 19th century to the present, are displayed. Selected landscape paintings by the pioneers of Icelandic visual arts, abstract paintings and sculptures from the mid 20th century, and contemporary art in all its diversity are presented. Landscape and national heritage are pronounced in Icelandic art, while international trends set their mark on the artwork.

This exhibition, mounted by the National Gallery in the loft and staircase, is the first step taken towards utilizing the exhibition spaces in the Culture House for Icelandic art through the ages. When the exhibit is complete it will cover art from medieval to contemporary times and will then incorporate works in the custody of the National Museum of Iceland and the Árni Magnússon Institute of Icelandic Studies.

Opened 22 June 2011, on permanent view

Child of Hope - Youth and Jón Sigurðsson

The exhibition Child of Hope marks the bicentenary of the birth of Icelandic national hero Jón Sigurðsson (1811-79). It explores his childhood and youth in Arnarfjörður and Reykjavík, and his later life in Copenhagen, where he was engaged in scholarly and political work. Jón and his wife Ingibjörg were childless, but brought up Jón’s nephew Sigurður from the age of eight.

This is a colourful portrayal of the life of a country lad from the West Fjords who went on to work in a shop in Reykjavík, before pursuing his education and becoming one of Iceland’s great political leaders, accompanied by his loyal wife who had waited so many years to marry him, and their little foster-son. Their personal story is recounted in the context of the Icelanders’ campaign for independence from Danish rule in the 19th century, and the broader European political movements of the time.

The title Child of Hope conjures up the praise and adulation that was heaped upon Jón Sigurðsson, in such terms as Iceland’s longed-for child, its honour, sword and shield, and highlights his iconic status in Icelandic history for his role in Iceland’s journey to autonomy.

The concept of the exhibition is to appeal specifically to children, and it is especially accessible to families and school groups. The exhibition text is by writer Brynhildur Þórarinsdóttir, who has retold Icelandic sagas for young readers, and design is by artist Sigurjón Jóhannsson.

Child of Hope is a joint project of the Culture House and the Jón Sigurðsson bicentennial anniversary committee.

From 15 January 2011 for an unspecified period of time

The Library Room

The Library Room, the old reading room of the National Library, features an exhibit selected and arranged by the National and University Library. On display are many of the landmark books of Icelandic cultural history, dating from the introduction of printing in the sixteenth century to the present day. These include the oldest published versions of the Sagas of Icelanders, Sagas of the Kings of Norway and Eddic poems, Hallgrímur Pétursson’s Psalms of Christ’s Passion and Vidalín’s Homilies, popular educational works from the Enlightenment, law codices and land registers, cultural journals and folktale collections from the nineteenth century, the works of Nobel laureate Halldór Laxness and other writers, selected books of poetry and much more.

A number of changing themed exhibitions run throughout the year in the Library Room. It serves as a bright and elegant setting for concerts, meetings, lectures and other events held at the Culture House.

Opened 20 April 2000, on permanent view

The Nation and Nature

The nature film the Nation and Nature by filmmaker Páll Steingrímsson is screened continuously during opening hours. In addition to man, the characters in the film are the animals around us; the Icelandic dog, horse, puffin, eider, goose and seal.

Steingrímsson captures the contact between man and nature in a sensitive way where respect for the subject matter comes first.

The film is 30 minutes long and one can sit down to enjoy it at any time.

Now and then from 18 February 2005

See my Black Ass - Folk tales with female heroes

Sjáðu svarta rassinn minn – which literally means See my Black Ass – is the title of a newly published book by two sisters; Brynhildur and Þórey Mjallhvít Heiðar- og Ómarsdóttir. In the book Brynhildur retells a few folk tales where women and girls are the central characters who confront the dark forces and overcome them. Þórey Mjallhvít painted the pictures in the book. Together they have mounted an exhibition at the Culture House with pictures from the book and odds and ends from Icelandic folk heritage, not all of it pretty, so maybe it is better to brace oneself before entering!

From 11 December 2010 and into March 2012

Art Exhibition Series at the Café and Shop - Whimbrel

Edda Heiðrún Backman is a nationally renowned actress and director. In late 2008 she decided to take on a new branch of art and eagerly and with growing artistry began to paint holding the brush in her mouth. Edda Heiðrún is currently featured at the art exhibition series in the Culture House shop and café. She displays oil paintings and watercolours while she also paints on glass and ceramics. She usually produces her works at the MS centre and at Grensás rehabilitation facility.

Birds have always been a fascination to Edda Heiðrún. They are a part of creation at large, and specifically of the skies, and symbolise freedom and independence. Birds have been the subject of the arts and literature ever since mankind began expressing itself through artistic means.

At Edda Heiðrún’s exhibition at the Culture House, the whimbrel plays the leading role. With its curved bill, long neck and high legs, it even appears to Edda Heiðrún in a dream as a plaid being she interprets in her piece Dream Play. In other paintings she shows the tending mother watching over her eggs, attending to her young and guiding them. Edda Heiðrún’s watercolours are often humorous, as the medium accentuates surprise and spontaneity. One of her pictures thus shows cormorants that seem to be singing together in a quire, and another shows a whimbrel that appears to be enjoying himself as an actor on stage.

Before these works the spectator forgets that the artist painted them with a brush held in the mouth. They are a testimony to Edda Heiðrún’s talent, perseverance and creativity.

In the fall 2009 Edda Heiðrún was admitted to the international Association of Mouth and Foot Painters. Her assistant and teacher in the field of painting is Derek K. Mundell.

From 1 December 2011 to 29 February 2012

Exhibitions in the Meeting Rooms

Opened 20 April 2000, on permanent view, Sundays